Nightmare On Elm Street: A Black Reimagining
There’s nothing more exciting than watching black stories come to life. For me, I’m a big fan of watching the world enjoy black names at the center of horror movies. It’s not too far-fetched to imagine some classics revamped and reimagined. The first film to come to mind is A Nightmare On Elm Street.
In a recent Clubhouse forum hosted by Afro Horror Pod, it was shared that Robert Englund himself has wondered about Freddy Krueger amidst a group of black protagonists. It was only right I took it upon myself to look back at the series and build a cast of my own. Here’s some of the best young black talent and the roles they would play if I was in charge of the continuation of A Nightmare On Elm Street.
The Elm Street Crew
Skai Jackson: You can’t talk rising black actresses without paying homage to Skai. She’s dominated both television and movies since her debut in 2007. I have no reservations in making her the lead in this film. She is more than capable of carving her name into the Final Girl Hall of Fame.
Justice Smith: Smith has shown a wealth of versatility ranging from the Get Down to Detective Pikachu. He’s the perfect addition to horror franchise that’s dying for his kind of energy. Will he have the brains or the brawn? Maybe we can switch things up and turn tropes on their heads in this classic. I’m thinking more Roland Kincaid than Joey Crusel.
CoCo Jones: Disney’s own has made her presence felt in music and movies. In this role, she could play companion to a well-rounded group of friends trying to defeat this evil. Personally, her and Skai going Nancy and Kristen on Freddy is *chef’s kiss*. We need more Scream Queens. We need multiple Scream Queens! It doesn’t have to be a bloodbath of women being wiped off screen.
Woody McClain: McClain has really got it out of the mud as a content creator. He’s raised the standard of social media and acting to crushing it as the legendary Bobby Brown. So what next is there to conquer besides Freddy Krueger? Most of his roles focus on him being the muscle or playboy, but how about unhinged by trauma? This would be a nice addition to an impressive resume already compiled.
Freddy Krueger Himself…
LaKeith Stanfield: He’s dipped a foot in the horror waters in Get Out, Purge Anarchy, and Death Note. Stanfield is screams horror. He was rumored to star as the lead in Nia Da Costa’s Candyman, but that role was soon given to Yaha Abdul-Mateen II. He even expressed hoping to do his own iteration as DC’s Joker. This is his chance to play an icon. Freddy has to be 1) witty, 2) frail, and 3) eccentric as hell. I think Stanfield checks all of the boxes and then some.
I would love to see this film done in the style of Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. Allow Freddy to exist as a myth with limited presence. The only thing that lingers is the stories and his history. You’d also add in how these former students and childhood friends got themselves into this facility. It’d be the anti-New Mutants.
This is just an idea and conception at this point. But the foundation is there to build. Remakes often rely on the glory of yesterday to bring up nostalgia. Now is the time to capitalize on the opportunity to jumpstart from an ugly remake in 2010. A Nightmare On Elm Street can exist everywhere and to anybody — why not for us?
